With its story of a serial killer who rages with his flamethrower, is the Spanish series “1992” freely inspired by a true story? We have the answer.
Warning, spoilers! This article goes into detail about the plot of the 1992 series. If you have not seen it and do not want to know its content, do not continue reading.
It has already reached fourth position in Netflix's top series, at the time of writing these lines. The 1992 Spanish series is about a serial killer who attacks – with a flamethrower – people linked to the Seville World Expo which was held that year. We told you more last week.
The series presents plots, some of which may seem realistic, so much so that one might wonder if it is based on a true story. Even if in this case, it would obviously be tragic…
A pure fiction
Although some elements of 1992 could come from real life, the series is not based on a true story. Many aspects of the flamethrower killer's methods and motivations seem a little too exaggerated to be entirely believable.
However, the series manages to add many layers of realism when it comes to the other characters in the series. 1992 makes them more human and believable by giving insight into their lives beyond the central mysteries and intrigues surrounding them. Notably Amparo (Marian Alvárez) who seeks to elucidate the mystery surrounding the death of her husband with the help of Richi (Fernando Valdivielso).
Seville Expo 1992 and the Curro mascot are real
However, not everything came from the imagination of the screenwriters, Álex de la Iglesia and Jorge Guerricaechevarria. The 1992 title refers to Expo 92 in Seville, a real-life event that celebrated the 500th anniversary of Christopher Columbus' arrival in America after departing from the port of Seville.
And as shown in the series, the Curro was the official mascot of the exhibition. It was a giant white bird with elephant feet and a rainbow-colored beak. Unlike the Expo depicted in the series, the real Expo was a success and its pavilions were only dismantled after its conclusion.
And of course, no one died during the events surrounding the original exhibit and no serial killer has ever used the exhibit's mascot as a mask to commit their crimes.
1992 is currently available on Netflix.
